Why You’ll Never Reach Your True Potential — Andrei Vasilachi

4 min read

1 in 400 trillion — the odds of you being born.
My life is nothing special. There’s 7 billion people on the Planet.

Unique DNA.
What difference does it make since my genes are predetermined and there’s no real free will?

400.000 people are born every day.
So they could serve the capitalistic consumerist machine and live conformist lives.

You’re a kid. You play, you fall down, you get hurt, you cry, you laugh, you get up, you dream.

Your parents tell you you can become anything you want. You believe them so you dream.

Your parents get a divorce and you’re very sad for a few years. You pray every night so they could get back together.

They don’t get back together. You stop praying. You blame God and you blame fate.

You grow up, your mind gets busy, you hit puberty.

You fall in love, you make friends, your heart gets broken and you break hearts. You have new interests, you hate your old interests, you have new interests.

You think you’re smarter than anyone else until you meet someone smarter who bruises your ego.

You hate your skinny body so you start lifting weights. You’re awkward at it but you still persist.

You have a breakup, you’re apathetic and you’re not sure what you should do with your life.

You isolate yourself for a year.

You change countries, you’re anxious, you’re excited.

You embarrass yourself by crying beside your best friend. You get nostalgic and you cry in front of your ex and you’re the most miserable you’ve ever been.

You fall in depression, you think you’re worthless. You are right.

You realize you’ll never reach your true potential because you’re a piece of shit.

You discover books, you read, you learn to play guitar, you write songs.

You go back to your childhood place and you fall in love again. Your heart gets broken and you’re the most miserable you’ve ever been.

You try new things, you take more action, you meet new people.

You feel better, you are not that bad, you start loving yourself. You are right.

You study, you learn new skills, you read more, you realize that you’re even more ignorant and stupid than you thought. But it feels good.

You start being more positive and it reflects on other people. Your relationships improve, you meet new people.

You see the sadness in others and you have the urge to uplift them. You learn more things about the human nature. You enjoy the present more. You’re happy for no reason.

There’s so many things to do, so many things to learn, and so little time.

You realize you’ll never reach your true potential because there’s not enough time.

You’re an adult. You play, you fall down, you get hurt, you cry, you laugh, you get up, you dream.

1 in 400 trillion — the odds of you being born.
You are nothing special yet you are part of a Planet that just happens to be at a perfect distance from the Sun which makes life possible and which is part of a Solar system that is part of a galaxy that is part of a cluster of galaxies that is part of an Universe that is (maybe) part of multiple Universes.

You have a consciousness that is able to grasp and study the Universe.

Yeah, you’re nothing special.

Unique DNA.
You learn about epigenetics which are the „unimportant” 97% of your DNA which are determined by your life experience. You learn that your choices matter. They affect the DNA of your future kids. Free will is still an illusion, but it’s an illusion in which you play a crucial role.

400.000 people are born every day.
So they could make their lives matter in spite of suffering and bad luck and misery by their sheer power of will. So they could make someone’s life better. So they could learn a new skill, so they could love another human being. So they could be hurt and dissapointed, yet still be able to uplift others. So they could laugh and make other people laugh till their stomach hurts. So they could eat all the delicious foods, listen to all the sweet music, read all the marvelous books, visit all the peculiar places, and meet all the different people.

And to still not have enough, to still have the urge to live.
To never reach their true potential.